Hi, folks! My name is Conor Kelley, writing you from Seattle, and I’m excited to join the Cascadia Editors Collective as a publishing specialist. For the past 13 years, I’ve learned how to develop creative projects and reach readers in a variety of ways. I’ve collected a 360-degree experience of publishing that will help other Cascadia writers see their work in the world.
I earned a BA in English and later an MFA in Creative Writing at New York University. During that time and since, I’ve helped writers with applications, dissertations, and research projects. I’ve also tutored and taught, and this winter I’m co-teaching a creative writing workshop at the University of Washington.
I’ve published short fiction and creative nonfiction in literary magazines like the Bellevue Literary Review and Hippocampus Magazine, and served as an editor at two literary magazines, Tenth Muse and The Articulate, where I evaluated manuscripts and worked with writers on edits big and small.
I bring some journalism experience to CEC, as well, with clips in newspapers like the Tri-City Herald, the Telegraph Herald, and The Seattle Times. I’ve also been featured in some online outlets like the Seattle Mariners blog Lookout Landing. For The Stranger here in Seattle, I write a weekly column called This Week in Worker Conquests.
On the book end (pun intended), I’ve published a nonfiction baseball instructional book The Catcher’s Handbook (McFarland & Co., 2014) and co-written over a dozen books with Hall of Fame athletes and Fortune 500 CEOs. At the international publishing house Quarto Book Group, I developed original book ideas, signed authors, and shepherded books from proposal to publication. And now, with Lucinda Literary, I’m developing my own book projects as well as co-writing with authors represented by the agency.
But I still remember how daunting it was starting out. And every project, be it an article or a novel, can feel that way at the beginning. If you choose to work with Cascadia, I’ll be a resource to help you clarify your ideas at the onset, develop a plan to do the writing, and finish that manuscript, no matter the length or genre.
We’ll choose a goal for the project, target a path to publication, and help you pitch your project to give it the best chance to find readers.
Writing can be tough enough. Publishing doesn’t have to be.
I can’t wait to see what you’ve got.